The invention relates to a ball joint for connecting rod parts having a ball socket for flexible plastic on the end of a shaft in order to receive a ball head.
In these known small joints it is important that the ball head be assembled with the ball socket without the expenditure of a large amount of force. For this purpose it has already been proposed in Federal Republic of Germany Pat. Nos. 15 25 177, 16 25 581 and 19 21 769 that the ball socket be developed as an open fork and that it be closed from the outside by a closure part developed as a yoke spring. In this known construction, the ball head is not completely encapsulated and the closure part increases the outside dimensions of the ball socket and can easily become loose from the ball socket if the material becomes fatigued and/or breaks in the region of its film hinge.
In another construction known from Federal Republic of Germany GM No. 80 31 790, it has been proposed that the assembling be facilitated by recesses arranged, spaced apart from each other, in the ball socket. This known solution, however, has the disadvantage that the ball head can very easily also slip out of the ball socket.
It is an object of the invention to create a ball joint of simple construction having a substantially closed ball socket, in which a securing element for the ball head is non-detachably injection molded and engages into the ball socket upon assembly with the ball head.